CHICAGO, IL— (club release) Seattle Reign FC midfielder Kim Little was voted the National Women’s Soccer League (NWSL) Player of the Week by the NWSL Media Association for Week 3 of the 2016 NWSL season.

Little, 25, scored the lone goal of the game to help Reign FC earn a 1-0 victory Sunday over FC Kansas City at Memorial Stadium in Seattle. It was the team’s first home win of the season.

The Mintlaw, Aberdeenshire, Scotland native scored the game-winning goal in the 56th minute when she settled the ball from a Manon Melis pass inside the Kansas City penalty box and redirected the ball around a defender to score far post.

The Scotland international played all 90 minutes of the game and finished with three shots (two on goal).

It is the third time Little has been honored as the NWSL Player of the Week, with her previous accolade in Week 2 of the 2016 NWSL season. She has been voted Player of the Month four times in her NWSL career. It is the 11th time a member of Reign FC has won the award.

Seattle Reign FC will return to action on the road Sunday, May 8 at 5 p.m. ET against the Orlando Pride at Camping World Stadium, formally known as the Orlando Citrus Bowl in Orlando, Fla.

Kim Little and Seattle Reign FC return to Seattle on Sunday, May 14th as they take on the Portland Thorns FC at 7 p.m. PT at Memorial Stadium. Tickets are available at http://www.reignfc.com/thorns or by calling (855) REIGN-FC.

The NWSL Player of the Week is selected each week of the regular season by the NWSL Media Association, a collection of press that cover the league on a consistent basis. For more information on the NWSL Media Association, follow them on Twitter.

Reign disperse KC in Title rematch

SEATTLE, WA––(club release)Seattle Reign FC (2-1-0, 6 pts) picked up its second consecutive win of the season by defeating FC Kansas City (0-2-1, 1 pt) 1-0 at home tonight at Memorial Stadium in front of a crowd of 4,083. With the win, Seattle now sits tied with Chicago in third place, three points behind the league-leading Washington Spirit and one point behind the 2nd place Portland Thorns FC, who Reign FC will face in their next home match.

Midfielder Kim Little delivered the lone goal of the night in the 56th minute, while Seattle’s defense consistently choked FCKC’s offensive attempts throughout the match, holding the Blues to only four shots on goal.

Seattle managed but one shot in the first half while FCKC doubled that tally with two, one of which required Reign FC keeper Hope Solo to make her only save of the night.

Coming back from halftime with the score knotted at 0-0, forward Merritt Mathias took the ball down to the left corner where she chipped it back to Manon Melis just inside the 18. Melis then passed it to midfielder Kim Little who dribbled it past Blues defender Amanda Frisbie and aimed a strike straight back into the left corner of the net for the goal.

After the goal, injury and fatigue began to be a factor for Reign FC, as forward Elli Reed went down in the 70th minute after a melee at the mouth of the goal. While she stepped off, a collision at the left corner of the KC box between Blues midfielder Alexa Newfield, Melis, and midfielder Keelin Winters had Melis clutching her ankle, having irritated a previous injury.

Reed returned to the match while forward Kiersten Dallstream came in for Melis in the 75th minute. After suffering from leg cramps in the 80th minute, Mathias was substituted out, with Michelle Cruz entering the match for the first time this season.

In the closing moments of the match FCKC pushed forward in attempt to even up the score, yet they struggled to maintain possession in Reign FC territory and were unable to answer to Little’s goal. Having lost to FCKC in their last meeting – the NWSL Championship Match – tonight’s win was a welcome result for Reign FC. The win is just the third time in four seasons that Seattle has defeated its Midwestern rivals.

“I thought it was very ‘Reign – Kansas,’” said Reign FC head coach Laura Harvey. “It was very tactical and edgy. I said to the girls that every game we play against them is pretty much like that. There’s limited chances and it could come down to mistakes or a bit of brilliance. Thankfully today, Kim’s bit of brilliance won us the game.”

Reign FC will travel to Orlando to face the Orlando Pride at Camping World Stadium on Sunday, May 8. The match will be streamed live on YouTube at youtube.com/nwsl beginning at 2:00 p.m. PT.

On Saturday, May 14, Reign FC will host Portland Thorns FC in the first of four regular season matches this season at 7:00 p.m. PT. Tickets start at just $18 and are available at reignfc.com/thorns or by calling (855) REIGN-FC.

Seattle Reign FC is one of ten teams in the National Women’s Soccer League. The NWSL is the premier women’s professional soccer league in North America, featuring many of the top players from the United States, Canada and around the world. Seattle Reign FC train and host home matches at Memorial Stadium, located in the shadow of the Space Needle on the Seattle Center campus. For more information on the club visit reignfc.com.